


a little closer to grace

by dottie_wan_kenobi



Series: practice prompts [22]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), POV Sirius Black, Shrieking Shack, either one works!!, rated for minor angst and mentions of blood, technically this could be pre-slash or established
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:48:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24891091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dottie_wan_kenobi/pseuds/dottie_wan_kenobi
Summary: The Shrieking Shack was a large, creaking building, filled with spiders and mice. It was cold, and dark, and some corners were eternally damp, though there was no running water. The roof had holes, and some of the windows were smashed out, others missing the glass panes completely. There were rooms where the floor wasn’t worth the risk, and others where the draft was so bad Sirius refused to go inside unless he was wearing his fur coat.It was so unlike Hogwarts, a pervasive feeling of pain and suffering, the slight stinging smell of blood. The magic there wasn’t exciting or happy like the halls of the school—it was confining, sad, an afterthought. It wasn’t a place to experiment, a place with no consequences.Sirius loved it.----written for the prompt, "Making a goofy face until they notice and laugh"
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Series: practice prompts [22]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1626685
Kudos: 24





	a little closer to grace

**Author's Note:**

> another practice prompt with @whateverrrrwhatever, not britpicked but i did go thru to try and take out anything egregiously american!!  
> title from Smile by Mikky Ekko

The Shrieking Shack was a large, creaking building, filled with spiders and mice. It was cold, and dark, and some corners were eternally damp, though there was no running water. The roof had holes, and some of the windows were smashed out, others missing the glass panes completely. There were rooms where the floor wasn’t worth the risk, and others where the draft was so bad Sirius refused to go inside unless he was wearing his fur coat.

It was so unlike Hogwarts, a pervasive feeling of pain and suffering, the slight stinging smell of blood. The magic there wasn’t exciting or happy like the halls of the school—it was confining, sad, an afterthought. It wasn’t a place to experiment, a place with no consequences.

James and Peter took months to get used to it. Peter brought extra blankets and would always cast warming spells before they slept. James peered at the corners, unafraid but cautious, ready to jump to his feet and fight off an intruder who would never come. Remus walked around without flinching, unconcerned with the chill and the spiders and the stains on the floor.

Sirius loved the place. It was like home away from home, almost, although Sirius had felt Hogwarts was his real home for the past five years. Home away from Grimmauld Place, then.

There were things he didn’t like about the Shrieking Shack, of course. He didn’t like seeing Peter shivering cold, or James so stoic, or Remus in so much pain. He didn’t like the spiders, and he wasn’t particularly fond of the mice, either, and not even because Peter refused to play with them. He hated the blood, and hated how Remus didn’t seem to notice it anymore. But there were good things too—Wormtail’s little paw prints in the dust, Prongs’ antlers in the moonlight, the freedom he felt as Padfoot, and of course how it all made Moony loosen up. He liked the cold, too, but only when it ruffled through his fur on warmer nights, and he liked curling up with the others to sleep.

Best of all, Remus would smile in the mornings. He’d stretch out his whole body, rubbing at the spots where it hurt the worst, but he would see he had no new wounds—he would see Sirius and James and Peter—and he would smile. It stopped Sirius dead, that smile. And maybe he was just a hormonal sixteen year old, maybe it was the fact that Padfoot and Moony felt like pack, maybe it was none of that but Sirius thought he would do just about anything to make Remus happy.

Except Remus wasn’t smiling today.

He sat near the door, looking across the room and out the window, where the sun was coming up slow and far off, the sky still mostly dark. Birds sang obnoxiously outside, the world waking up from the night of the full moon. It was warm thanks to Peter, and it smelled like the forest and Hogsmeade and magic, and it was a beautiful morning, made all the more normal by the sound of James and Peter’s deep breathing.

But Remus wasn’t smiling.

His eyes were glazed over, a blanket haphazardly draped over his body. The lines on his face—more from stress and pain that laughter—were deep as he frowned, his brows furrowing while Sirius watched. He didn’t know what he was thinking, but he could guess. Remus had doubts about the whole Animagi thing, and especially about the three of them being around him on the full moons. Even though they’d gone through five at this point and nothing had happened. He was being stupid and noble and self-sacrificing, Sirius thought. It was obvious not being alone helped him, and again— _nothing bad had happened_ , and if it hadn’t yet he was sure it wouldn’t happen at all. 

But Remus didn’t like to hear that. He liked to stew in his angsty thoughts, and got mad when they were interrupted before he could come to any conclusions. Too bad for him that Sirius loved to interrupt.

He changed into Padfoot under the blanket he and Peter were sharing, and rolled onto his back, looking at Remus upside down. His ears flat to the ground, his tongue lolling out, he dragged his tail back and forth in an attempt to catch Remus’ attention. When that didn’t work, he beat his tail against the floor a few times, and when _that_ didn’t work, he finally let out a soft woof.

Remus startled, blinking and looking over. “Pads?” He asked, sounding groggy and distracted.

Sirius exaggerated his face, letting his tongue flop down and almost—but not quite—brushing the floor. He brought his paws up, too, waving them around in the air until finally, finally Remus’ frown eased, the corners of his mouth curling up just the tiniest, ittiest bittiest bit.

“Stop being dumb,” Remus said, a little breathy with a suppressed laugh.

It wasn’t a smile, but that was okay. The spell was broken, the frown gone. That was good enough for now.

**Author's Note:**

> rebloggable version coming soon.


End file.
